Published September 12 2026 Jump to comments section Print this page Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Your browser does not support playing this file but you can still download the MP3 file to play locally. Is money a tool of moral decay or a force for human liberation? Dante feared money would corrupt and damn us, placing bankers in the eighth circle of hell - just one above Lucifer.

James Joyce saw it as a tool of freedom, and markets and trade as vital engines of connection and social mobility. In this special bonus episode recorded live in front of an audience at the FT Weekend Festival in London, hosts Gillian Tett and Robin Wigglesworth are joined by economist and author David Mc Williams to explore humanity’s complex, seductive relationship with finance. From 14th-century Florentine banking and the birth of zero in accounting to Joyce’s Ulysses and modern central banking, they discuss how literature reveals why money animates human progress, and why trade remains humanity’s ultimate alternative to war.

Further reading: Money: A Story of Humanity (2024), by David Mc Williams Love listening to The Story of Money? Be sure to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and watch full episodes on the show's dedicated You Tube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@FTThe Story Of Money Hosts: Gillian Tett and Robin Wigglesworth Guest: David Mc Williams Producer: Lulu Smyth Senior Producer: Michela Tindera Executive Producers: Manuela Saragosa & Kate Ford Original Music and Sound Engineering: Breen Turner View our accessibility guide.